Pasta Papa Recipes

PAPA'S FAVORITE PASTA SAUCE

Steps:

• Wash, cut up pieces of chicken; pat dry with paper towel.
• Season with 1 tsp.
• salt; set aside.
• In a large saucepan, heat oil and saute onions and garlic.
• Add chicken pieces skin-side down and brown lightly.
• Add the sweet peppers, tomato puree, basil, oregano, parsley, salt and pepper flakes.
• Cover and simmer over low- medium heat on the stovetop for 1-1/2 hour.
• Note: Usually, tomato puree suggests adding a can of water.
• In this recipe, the water comes from the cooking peppers and chicken which dilutes the puree without additional liquid.
• However, if sauce becomes too thick during cooking, add 1/2 can of water (or wine) a little at a time until its consistency is to your liking.

PAPPA AL POMODORO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, fennel, and garlic and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until tender. Add the ciabatta cubes and cook for 5 more minutes. Place the tomatoes in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process just until coarsely chopped. Add the tomatoes to the pot along with the chicken stock, red wine, basil, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and allow to simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• For the topping, place the ciabatta cubes, pancetta, and basil on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss well. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 25 minutes, until all the ingredients are crisp. The basil leaves will turn dark and crisp, which is perfectly fine. Reheat the soup, if necessary, beat with a wire whisk until the bread is broken up. Stir in the Parmesan and taste for seasoning. Serve hot sprinkled with the topping and drizzled with additional olive oil.

PAPPA AL POMODORO

Steps:

• Heat a medium Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and pancetta, and cook until the pancetta is brown and crispy, about 4 minutes. Remove to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
• Add the red onion, carrot, garlic and red pepper flakes to the pot. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add the salt, canned tomatoes, chicken broth and bread cubes; stir to combine. Nestle in the basil sprigs and Parmesan rind. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to maintain a gentle bubble. Stir in the pancetta.
• Cook for 25 minutes, stirring often to break apart the bread and prevent the Parmesan rind from sticking to the bottom of the pan. If the soup gets too thick, add extra broth as needed; the finished soup should be silky and thickened. Stir in the grated Parmesan.
• To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with a sprinkling of Parmesan, a drizzle of olive oil, and chopped basil.

SPEEDY PAPA AL POMODORO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a non-stick casserole dish or saucepan. Add the garlic cloves and basil stalks and fry for 1 min. Tip in the chopped tomatoes, a canful of water and the sugar and season to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 mins.
• Stir the bread through the soup to create a thick, stew-like consistency, then stir in most of the basil leaves. Ladle into bowls, finish with parmesan and some extra basil.

CHILEAN POTATO PIE (PASTEL DE PAPAS)

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
• Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two. Mash the hot potatoes with butter and salt. Let cool until just warm; stir in the beaten egg until smooth.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste; continue cooking until the tomatoes soften and begin to lose their shape. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the panquehue cheese and parsley; season to taste with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
• Spread half of the mashed potato mixture into the prepared baking dish. Cover with the ground beef mixture, then spread the remaining mashed potatoes over the beef to completely cover.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the potatoes are hot and the top is lightly browned, about 40 minutes.

PASTEL DE PAPAS

Steps:

• Cook potatoes and mash with milk, butter and salt. Set aside.
• Brown the ground beef and chopped onions with cumin, oregano and salt and pepper to taste. Some like more cumin than others.
• Drain raisins.
• Drain the ground beef mixture and place in baking pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Layer the sliced hard boiled eggs, olives and raisins over the meat mixture.
• Spread the mashed potatoes over the beef mixture. Sprinkle top of mashed potatoes with sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.